Delivering the opening speech, Sheikh Nahyan welcomed the participants and praised the conference’s “extensive and informative program, one that will address major issues and new developments in transfusion medicine, cellular therapies and patient blood management.”

Over today’s Education & Informative Sessions we covered latest developments in transfusion medicine, cellular therapies and patient blood management. The #AABBME 2019 Congress has been accredited with 15.5 CME Hours by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME).

While here, Sheikh Nahyan continued, I hope that you also will find time to explore Abu Dhabi and perhaps other areas of our fascinating country. If so, you will find one of the most diverse countries in the world with people from some 200 countries, living and working in harmony and in pursuit of peace and prosperity. Further, in the UAE you will encounter a dazzling array of architectural structures set in a traditional desert environment.

“Your participation in this conference emphasizes your acceptance of the responsibilities inherent in your work and reinforces the strength of your commitment to improve the quality of life for others, but you provide us more than your extraordinary professional knowledge and practice. You provide us a compelling example of tolerance.”

Sheikh Nahyan referred to the subject of tolerance as naturally preeminent in the country’s thinking.

“As the Minister of Tolerance, My commitment to enhancing tolerance has allowed me to see people, activities, and institutions in a new way. Healthcare, in particular, has attracted my attention. Medical professionals treat everyone fairly and equally irrespective of nationality, ethnicity, culture, gender, religious, philosophical, or political belief, physical or mental condition, age, or net worth. We all know that to be true. We expect it and even demand it. Human beings all over the world are, in effect, demanding tolerance. You respond admirably to our need. We all benefit from the tolerance of medical professionals.

Your tolerance is especially rich. It gains strength from the empathy and compassion that characterize medical treatment. Healthcare professionals engage their patients as unique individuals and in dialogue with them attempt to understand each individual. Doctors, nurses, technicians and their assistants do not fear people different from themselves. Instead, they treat them respectfully as fellow human beings.”

He went on to say: Transfusions arouse further thoughts about tolerance. Some blood types are incompatible. You ensure that patients receive only a blood type compatible with their own. Consequently, we depend upon your professional skills and knowledge to resolve incompatible, hence intolerant, mixing of blood types.

He indicated that one of the most striking messages communicated by transfusions is that, once the necessary criteria are set, the transfusions proceed without regard to the identity of either recipient or donor.

“Healthy and compatible blood type alone is what counts. The blood that you study is the blood that courses through the body of every living human being. Likewise, the other subjects of study in this conference cellular therapies and patient blood management are essential to the betterment of global human health.”

He stated at the end of his speech: “In this Year of Tolerance 2019 in the UAE as proclaimed by His Highness, the President, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, it is quite significant that this AABB conference is located in the UAE because it brings together professionals who demonstrate tolerance every day in their work.”